The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1887-09-24


quarter before twelve, and let you run
home, eat your luncheon. and then you
might go to Mrs. Merrifield for an
hour. Then if you could give her an
other hour from four to five in the
afternoon, she would be satisfied"
Ralph almost jumped for joy at the
prospect of earning three dollars a
week. Why, how glad he would be to
help mamma so much rs that! That
SOould be Ike the man of the house.
Miss Meredith proceeded; Mrs.
Mortified is an abrupt old lady, and
sometimes rather impatient in her
manner. You must not mind her plain
speaking, however And her taste in
reading may seem very dry to a boy
like you, but that you will be prepared
for, as it will only take two hours each
day."
miss Meredith" said Ralph, 81 do
not mind any thing, if l can only please
the lady, and earn some money for my
mother It's dreadful" he added,
confdentially, "to grow 80 fast and to
eat so much rs do"
1t wasn't the very pleasantest thing
in the world for a boy who liked to play
ball and cricket and lively games to
spend two hours day reading Baxter's
Saints Rest and Ovens Fourfold State
to blind old lady, but Ralph did it.
Mrs. Mortified took great fancy to
him from the moment she passed her
fine wrinkled hands over his smooth
young face, and the longer he came to
her, the more pleased she was, saying
now and then to Miss Meredith:
There's good blood there, my dear.
The little lads gentleman.
She could not see him color painfully
one day when she felt his are wrists
and OWNED the outgrown jacket, but
she had too delicate Il sense of his nat
ural pride to send him the order for
new suit of clothes, which she had re-
solved upon for his birthday present,
until fortnight later Miss Meredith
had happened to mention the boys
birthday.
Before Mrs Mortified sent her gift
she had a good excuse for doing so.
Ralph was sitting by the window. A
pause had come in the reading The
old lady liked to stop row and then to
consider what her favorite author had
been saying Suddenly, with hurried:
~ beg your pardon; must go, the
boy dashed out of the room, as if he
had been stung by a hornet, leaving
his patron with uplifted hands in q
state of amazement. Never had this
gentle boy behaved in so unparalleled
a manner.
| A moment later he was back, bear
inc in his arms beautiful dark-eyed
child, whose little dress was stained
with mud, while her hand was bleed
ing from sharp scratch. A Skye ter
rier brought up the rear, barking vio-
lently. and very much demoralized
maid came struggling after.
"Oh, grandma! grandma" cried the
little girl. "Iwould have been ruined
over if this big boy had not jumped
down from the sky just in time"
"Just in time" barked the skye ter
rier.
"And where were You, Melusine,"
inquired the old lady, severely, of the
maid, who was ashamed to tell the
truth, which was that she had forgotten
her little charge, while gossiping with
tall policeman, who in his turn was
unmindful of his duty, and did not OBJ
serve the horses which came whirling
round the corner faster than the law
allowed.
1t was after that Mrs. Mortified sent
the order for the new suit But think
there was greater merit in the steady
self-denial which made the boy ready
to give up two solid hours day to I'M
congenial work, than in the sudden
impulse which sent him out to snatch
a baby from peril.
He Is proving himself a worry charm
inc man of the house, though Uncle
Ichabod still grumbles at Jemlma'
wilfulness in spelling that boy.-lfar-
garet E. SongSter, tn Harper'S Ioanq
People.